Masood Hussain

JCAM: Where were you born and does that place still influence you?

MH: I was born in the Valley of Kashmir, in India - a place that has, for recorded history, been celebrated for its raw natural beauty, mild climate, a slow pace of life and a tranquil environment. For centuries, it was not only kings and emperors, but poets, scholars, intellectuals and artists alike, that travelled to this valley to seek a respite from the burdens of court life, to foster intellectual dialogue and to allow their creativity to thrive. It is not surprising that this small valley produced some of the finest arts and crafts and that those were the primary means of livelihood for its population.

My childhood was spent in a home built by my ancestors in the 1880s, who, like other Sufis, scholars, before them, had migrated to Kashmir from Central Asia. The neighborhood in which I grew up was a well-known and bustling part of Srinagar, the capital city of Kashmir. Our neighborhood was what we would now consider very crowded, with narrow lanes that are ill-suited to the overwhelming number of vehicles that clog the streets of Kashmir. But, those narrow lanes served as the vital channels that fostered an intense closeness between the friends, relatives and neighbors whose homes bordered and surrounded those lanes.

As a child with an artistic bent of mind, the natural beauty of my home and the many arts and crafts that surrounded me was a key influence in my artistic growth. But, more than that, it was the peace, harmony and love that existed among my community that had a more profound influence on me. And yes, despite the changes and the loss, it continues to influence me today.

JCAM: Where do you live now and how does that place influence you?

MH: I still live in the same town that I grew up in but now I live in, what we now consider a desirable neighborhood where the houses are not as close to each other and where the lanes and streets are wide enough to allow a steady stream of vehicles, blaring their horns, in all hours of the day and night. It was a newly developed neighborhood where my father moved his family after our ancestral house was sold. Unfortunately, that house was completely destroyed by the devastating floods of 2014 and we had to rebuild the home that I now live in.

The state of my current neighborhood, the changes in the social fabric in Kashmir and the decades of political and social turmoil, have failed to overcome the beautiful and profound influences of my childhood on my art. However, the continued onslaught of commercialization in my new home has influenced me with a deeper appreciation for the simplicity of the world that was my childhood. While I mourn the loss of that world, the struggles of the world I live in today influence me to strive even harder, through my work as an artist, to express the beauty of what was lost and to offer a hope for a better future.

JCAM: Do you have family, friends, or fellow artists who support you in your work, life and art making?

MH: My father, who was a very well-known physician and radiologist, was part of a generation that expected their children to take up professions that would guarantee a lucrative employment. So, when I expressed my desire to study art, his first reaction was less than supportive. But in time, he grew to appreciate my skill. Unfortunately, he passed away before he could see me grow in my profession.

But I was very fortunate in being married to my wife who has always allowed me the time and opportunity that my profession demands and supported the quirkiness and unique work style of an artist. My children have been equally supportive and have never demanded anything that, as a father, would comprise my dedication to my craft. I am also fortunate that I have a very loving and supportive family as well as relatives and friends who appreciate the work I do. The artist community in Kashmir, in other parts of India, as well as writers and artists from other countries, have been very generous with their support as well.

With that said, it is neither feasible nor possible for any of the members of my family or friends to actively help with the creation of my art. It is a process that I have to undertake on my own.

JCAM: When and how did you start making art?

MH: As a child I used to flip the pages of journals admiring the illustrations in them. When I was nearly six or seven years old I started drawing the illustrations that I liked. I remember the first painting that I made on canvas, was the portrait of a man with a bandaged head. The bandage was slightly stained with blood near the temples. It was inspired by a violent political protest that I witnessed as a child.

JCAM: Why do you make art now?

MH: You might as well ask me, “Why do I breathe, now?”. I create because it is the only way I know how to express my feelings towards the world I live in and to give a form to the experiences I have had in life.

The art that I create now is an expression of my intense and lifelong desire to offer hope and to bridge the gaps that have been created between people by decades of political strife. Through the artworks that I create now, I hope to remind people of the peace and harmony of my childhood, where Hindus and Muslims lived like brothers and shared every joyous occasion as well as moments of sorrow or loss. I see my effort as a flickering light of hope and prospects for a better future.

JCAM: What are you trying to communicate with your art?

MH: If I were to identify a common theme in my art, it would be Kashmir, my home. Whatever I try to communicate through my art has its foundation in Kashmir.

Part of my art simply reflects how I see the beauty of Kashmir, its people, its environment, the changing seasons, the everyday life of the Kashmiri. These are mostly watercolors and oil paintings that depict what might be considered mundane but they showcase, in a raw, unglorified format, what gives Kashmir its very unique identity.

With a more somber expression, some of my artworks, particularly mixed-media reliefs, communicate my view of the impact of the political turmoil on the Kashmir of my childhood and on the people who are caught in its crossfire. At the time I created these reliefs, I was reflecting on the inescapable reality of the world I saw around myself. It was neither a complaint, nor a protest – it was simply a universal truth of the impact of violence on an otherwise peaceful society existing in nature.

One of the ways I found an escape from the claustrophobic environment of Kashmir’s darkest days was in the words of Sufi writings. This was an apt remedy, considering Kashmir’s long association with Sufis. Partnering with like-minded writers, my art communicated the beauty and hope embedded in the words of the Sufis, both past and present.

As the daily violence has abated and glimmers of hope have started to shine, I am seeing the beginning of an expression of a more hopeful future, in the art I am creating now. I hope to communicate, to the younger generation, that despite the suffering of the past, there is hope for a better tomorrow.

JCAM: Do you have any creative patterns, routines or rituals associated with your art making?

MH: When an idea or an inspiration hits me and I feel ready to execute it, I grab my sketchbook and head out to one of the many Sufi shrines in my city or in the countryside. I try to get there early in the morning and sit in one of the latticed window boxes that are a architectural element of Sufi shrines in Kashmir. The sense of peace and tranquility that permeates these shrines, seems to cleanse me of everything except my creative thoughts and I begin to sketch the idea.

JCAM: What is your most important artist tool(s) and why?

MH: I feel that the most important tool that I possess and use, as an artist, is my sketchbook. It seems to be a tool that is universal among my fellow artist, be they painters, sculptors or graphic designers.

JCAM: How do you know when a work is finished?

MH: After I feel that I am done with a piece, I purposefully cover the piece, close the door of my studio and do not return to it for a few days. I then go back, open the piece up and if I feel that there is something in the composition or color or structure that does not quite feel complete, I continue working on it and repeat the same pattern, until I am satisfied that I cannot add or change anything.

JCAM: What new creative medium would you love to pursue?

MH: As shared in my answers above, my art reflects and communicates what I experience and feel at a particular point in time. I also like to stay current with new and innovative media in the world of art. With that in mind, I would like to start creating in audio visual technologies that are currently available.

JCAM: What strategies could you share with other artists on how to become successful professionally?

MH: For any art form to thrive, it is important that the artist is able to find an audience, and hopefully in their own lifetime. But that does not imply that an artists should create simply to cater to an audience. Doing so, might have a short-term advantage, especially in our current world of instant social media success, but it fails to create a lasting legacy.

My advice for other artists would be to first be true to their art – create and reflect what impacts you. Let your art tell a story and let that be the story that reflects your unique perspective. That is critical. Once you do that, I would recommend that you create a presence on social media or in other such forums and in doing so, not simply list your paintings for sale but actually speak to the paintings, articulate what it conveys, encourage a debate on your perspective. That will give life to your painting and if you have the skill, are sincere with your art, and can convey its essence, you will find professional success.

JCAM: What interesting projects are you working on at the moment?

MH: I am in the process of creating a series of paintings on the writings of one of foremost Sufi saints of India called Kabir. It is in partnership with the Irish poet, Gabriel Rosenstock, who has compiled a Gaelic translation of some of Kabir’s poems in the book,“Songs of Kabir”. The book was written by Rabindra Nath Tagore, the Nobel prize winning, poet, writer and artist of India. I am also working on a series of reliefs based on the cultural heritage and history of Kashmir.

JCAM: What are your artistic goals for the future?

MH: My near-term goal is to establish an artist residency in Kashmir, where artists from around India and the world, can find a place to interact, debate, discuss and create in a calm and peaceful environment, in the shadow of the Himalayan mountains and overlooking the beautiful Dal Lake of Kashmir. I have decided to title the residency as “Samanbal” – the Kashmiri word for a ‘place to gather’. The building, that I designed and that I actively participate in building, is nearly complete. I hope to have the program up and running with the first group of artists in residence by no later than Spring of 2024.

JCAM: What or who inspires you?

MH: What inspires me is my home, Kashmir. I am fortunate that I live in a place where a simple walk by the river’s edge, a few yards from my home, can inspire me enough to begin to create. My inspiration has continued to be fed as Kashmir has gone through significant changes from one decade to the next. The events and situations that have occurred are enough to inspire the least artistic among the people — not to speak of myself as someone who sees inspiration in everything that touches me.

JCAM: Do you have a favorite – or influential – living artist?

MH: My favorite living artist is a fellow Kashmiri artist, Raqib Shaw. Shaw's paintings suggest a fantastical world full of intricate detail, rich color and jewel-like surfaces.

JCAM: What work of art do you wish you owned and why?

MH: The painting that I admire most is Pablo Picasso’s “Guernica.” Not surprisingly, it speaks to me with the same message that I want to convey through my art – the horror of political violence and a yearning for peace.

However, I do not have a desire to own it. I do not believe in owning art. I believe ownership of art, especially a work like Guernica, implies a sense of materialism and ego. It is as if you are trying to own the creativity of someone else only because you can afford to. For me, I am perfectly happy in knowing that it is preserved, and I can look at it and continue to be inspired, whenever I want or need to.

JCAM: Where do you find ideas for your creative work?

MH: A lot of my creative ideas have come from my observations and experiences in my native land. Because Kashmir has experienced an unprecedented degree of change within my lifetime, it has continued to fuel my imagination and it continues to inspire me.

JCAM: What does being creative mean to you?

MH: Although creativity, in its essence, has a universal definition, historically, for the Kashmiri artist, creativity has been more than the act of creation. It has included the ability to create without expectation of a just reward or any recognition for their creativity. The shawl weavers of Kashmir, whose creations adorned princes and queens across the world, were never able to put so much as their initials on their creations. Not to mention, the exploitation they endured, ironically, for their very creativity. Following in their footsteps, as a fellow artist, for me creativity means the ability to rise over tremendous odds and break barriers, challenge the status quo, raise questions, initiate debate and show courage in one’s convictions. It also means to create not simply for the purpose of creation, but to convey a message, a concept and a thought.

JCAM: What is the best advice you ever had about how to be more creative?

MH: The best advice that I received from one of the teachers in my college was to deliberately challenge the norm and look at every experience and observation from your own, unique perspective.

JCAM: What Is Creativity?

MH: For me, the definition of creativity is both universal and relative. My understanding of creativity is two-layered. One is the ability to think beyond the obvious, experiment and deliver a physical product or an idea that either solves a problem or has aesthetic and intellectual value. The other is the ability to use non-conventional, unexplored and innovative ways to overcome the challenges of expressing one’s creativity and sharing the message it carries, with the world.

JCAM: When Does Creativity Happen?

MH: In my opinion, there is no single or universal answer to this question. If I were to attempt an answer I would say that sometimes creativity occurs when one is faced with a challenge that does not have an obvious response. This is when the creative among the people rise above the crowd to show courage and try novel ideas, regardless of whether they fail or succeed. In other times, creativity can occur when a creative person experiences or observes something that they can no longer contain within themselves. Creative pours forth in what we call art. In my own case, not every observation or experience results in a creative expression. But without reason or explanation, sometimes there is something that does and I cannot contain it within myself. I have to express it in one medium or another.

JCAM: How was your art practice affected and/or changed by the COVID pandemic?

MH: The pandemic has changed my approach in a number of ways, When the city locked down, my studio shrunk from a large, shared space to a desk in my home. Unable to lock-down my creativity, I began a series of paintings titled “A prayer and a love poem for our stricken world”. It was, again, the outlet that let me speak to those that I could not see or meet.

If there was a silver lining in that cloud of COVID, it was that it gave me time to experiment with my interest in modern audio-visual media and I worked on several digital images that became my entry into the world of social media.

Contact information:

Email - hussainmasood.h@gmail.com

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/masood121

Instagram - https://tinyurl.com/33wu5tzu History